Lane Ranger: Remain calm to avoid road rage incident

Published: Sunday, April 7, 2013 at 6:32 p.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, April 7, 2013 at 6:32 p.m.

You’re driving on a busy street at rush hour, such as Maricamp Road or State Road 200, and your vehicle is abruptly cut off by another driver. How you react can escalate to road rage.

According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety brochure “How to Avoid Aggressive Driving,” at www.aaafoundation.org, behavior such as running a red light or traveling 15 mph over the speed limit “performed deliberately and with ill intentions or disregard for safety, can constitute aggressive driving” and lead to road rage.

A foundation study found that “action such as tailgating, erratic lane changing or illegal passing are a factor in up to 56 percent of fatal crashes.” Another study considered 10,000 road rage incidents over seven years and found they resulted in “at least 218 murders and another 12,610 injury cases.”

The brochure details three main ways to avoid being the victim of an aggressive driver:

Don’t offend by cutting off or driving slowly in the left lane, tailgating or making gestures.

Don’t engage, steer clear, giving the offending driver lots of room; avoid eye contact, which can turn an impersonal encounter between two vehicles into a personal duel.

Adjust your attitude and forget about winning; put yourself in the other driver’s shoes; and, look for help if necessary with stress reduction and anger management courses and books.

The Florida Highway Patrol lists “Signs of Road Rage and How To Avoid” at www.flhsmv.gov/safetytips.

“Generally aggressive driving, sudden acceleration and braking, tailgating, cutting off or not letting other drivers merge, use of horn and lights, shouting obscenities and threats, hand gestures, intentional crashing, getting out of the vehicle to start a confrontation, and the threat of a weapon or throwing things are all considered aggressive driving,” the site states.

The site lists ways to avoid road rage, such as keeping cool, avoiding eye contact, not using a vehicle to intimidate, getting out of the left lane for fast moving vehicles, calling police if you witness road rage, never driving if tired or irritable, avoiding confrontation, not becoming frustrated or stressed out and if you do, remove yourself from the situation.

<p>You're driving on a busy street at rush hour, such as Maricamp Road or State Road 200, and your vehicle is abruptly cut off by another driver. How you react can escalate to road rage.</p><p>According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety brochure “How to Avoid Aggressive Driving,” at www.aaafoundation.org, behavior such as running a red light or traveling 15 mph over the speed limit “performed deliberately and with ill intentions or disregard for safety, can constitute aggressive driving” and lead to road rage.</p><p>A foundation study found that “action such as tailgating, erratic lane changing or illegal passing are a factor in up to 56 percent of fatal crashes.” Another study considered 10,000 road rage incidents over seven years and found they resulted in “at least 218 murders and another 12,610 injury cases.”</p><p>The brochure details three main ways to avoid being the victim of an aggressive driver:</p><p>Don't offend by cutting off or driving slowly in the left lane, tailgating or making gestures.</p><p>Don't engage, steer clear, giving the offending driver lots of room; avoid eye contact, which can turn an impersonal encounter between two vehicles into a personal duel.</p><p>Adjust your attitude and forget about winning; put yourself in the other driver's shoes; and, look for help if necessary with stress reduction and anger management courses and books.</p><p>The Florida Highway Patrol lists “Signs of Road Rage and How To Avoid” at www.flhsmv.gov/safetytips.</p><p>“Generally aggressive driving, sudden acceleration and braking, tailgating, cutting off or not letting other drivers merge, use of horn and lights, shouting obscenities and threats, hand gestures, intentional crashing, getting out of the vehicle to start a confrontation, and the threat of a weapon or throwing things are all considered aggressive driving,” the site states.</p><p>The site lists ways to avoid road rage, such as keeping cool, avoiding eye contact, not using a vehicle to intimidate, getting out of the left lane for fast moving vehicles, calling police if you witness road rage, never driving if tired or irritable, avoiding confrontation, not becoming frustrated or stressed out and if you do, remove yourself from the situation.</p>